Venezuela: Simpsons unsuitable for children, replaced with… Baywatch???

by Anna Brones on

The Simpsons is such a TV-institution that it is pretty much enjoyed all around the world. If you think Homer is amusing in English, just try him in Danish. But not everyone finds the classic dysfunctional family humorous. In Venezuela the TV show has been dropped from morning television because it was deemed unsuitable for children.

The BBC reports that Venezuela’s TV regulator finds that the show sends “messages that go against the whole education of boys, girls and adolescents.” Which show does a better job of sending positive messages to children? The bikini-clad, silicon-stuffed ladies of Baywatch apparently. That is exactly the show that Caracas TV station Televen decided to replace the mid-morning Simpsons slot with.

The Simpsons might make it back onto Venezuelan TV, just later in the evening. That way children can have their morning cereal with suitable half-naked American women instead of the unsuitable deadbeat, donut-eating father who says “doh” a lot. We wouldn’t want children growing up with a bad example now would we?

Skybus’s bankruptcy affects honeymoon plans 35 years in the making

by Jamie Rhein on

Skybus is still making front page of Columbus’s newspaper. We’re still having the tail end of Skybus drama at my house. Two nights ago, my friend called telling me that he had received the e-mail from Skybus telling him his flight in May was no more and that there weren’t any refunds. My friend is out $300, I would guess, because he paid for the ticket back in September and rebooked it in October. Too bad he doesn’t have the $300 for a flight to Columbus on another airlines because those flights can be found. My husband was able to cancel the charge on our credit card for the cost of the ticket he booked for this August. Our problems are nothing compared to the folks who are out of a job without warning.

There is another Skybus story that really pulls on the old heartstrings. A Columbus couple who had been dating for 35 years and finally got married had planned to fly to California for their honeymoon. The couple are in their 70s. They haven’t flown in years because of the cost, but family bought them the Skybus tickets for a wedding present. This is a couple who decided to get married so he wouldn’t have to drive home at night. The wedding was the day after Skybus’ last flight so their honeymoon bit the dust until the groom’s sister sprung for the flight on United Airlines. The couple is now heading to San Diego next week. I hope they have good weather and a good flight.

The groom’s sister just happens to live in San Diego so they are staying with her. If United Airlines wanted to capitalize on this story, I’d think they could come up with something catchy. At least on a United Airlines flight they can get something to drink and a snack without paying extra–at least not yet.

What strange things have been found on planes?


Read more wedding horror stories from AisleDash:

Olympic torch: Carrying a flame of peace is not that easy

by Jamie Rhein on

Conan O’Brien called the bus that was loaded up with the Olympic torch the burning bus. I think that’s what he said. Whatever it was, it got a chuckle from last night’s audience. He was referring to the news story that the Olympic torch was loaded onto a bus outside Paris because protesters kept trying to put it out all the way from London. The protesters are upset about China’s policies in Tibet and Sudan

I first heard about the torch woes yesterday afternoon from a radio news report. From what I heard, the torch was put out and relit a couple of times. It sure didn’t sound like a movie version of a grand athletic event to me. I’m thinking of the kind of event where the music from “Chariots of Fire” plays and everyone moves in slow motion. There’s hugging and cheering, maybe some tears–that kind of thing. Instead, I have images of pushing, shoving, yelling between those who want to put the torch out and those who don’t. The great commotion between onlookers, police officers and protesters, I imagine, might be giving the people who agreed to carry it pause–as in “What was I thinking?” Think a Shakespeare crowd scene. “Put the torch out!” yells some of the crowd. “Save the torch!” yells the bulk of the crowd. “If it’s put out, what will become of us?” The practical crowd members are the ones who saw the writing on the wall and put it on the bus.

Protesters have already scaled the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to put up Tibetan flags against the torch’s appearance in San Francisco tomorrow. Should be an exciting time to see just how this flame fares.

Considering the Olympic Torch Relay symbolizes world love or some such thing, it’s ironic that it’s the target. Actually, the flame means that people should put down their arms in a sacred truce. The arms means guns, but in this case, perhaps it should mean real arms, as in those things attached to people’s bodies. On the other hand, the protesters are making a point. It certainly makes for a twist on the tale of Olympic glory history.

A Passover Seder in Taiwan (and other places)

by Jamie Rhein on

One of the more interesting aspects of living in another country, I think, is going to a cultural event that is not part of ones own culture or the culture of the host country. In each place I’ve lived, there have been people from other countries who are also transplants who have brought aspects of their own cultures with them. Such was the case with the Passover Seder I went to at the American Club in Taipei. I’m not Jewish, but a good friend that I taught with in Hsinchu is, and she asked if I wanted to go.

The American Club was merely the location of the event. One didn’t have to be an American to go, or a member of the American Club. There were Jewish folks from all over the world. If I hadn’t been living in Taiwan, I wouldn’t have had this experience–not because there haven’t been Seders that I could have gone to before this, but because it’s so easy to become routine in ones habits. Living overseas gets one out of the routine and, at least to me, opens up other possibilities for cultural exchange.

With Passover coming up, April 19-27, I was reminded of this experience. Here’s a Web site of the Chabad-Lubavitch where you can find Seders to attend all over the world, as well as, a variety of activities and info about Passover. The International Seder Finder lists 2,000 Seders. This link leads to descriptions of the cultural significance of each of the foods shown in the picture.

Can’t afford Europe? Head to a theme town!

by Catherine Bodry on

With the dollar dropping into a bottomless pit, there will likely be fewer US visitors to Europe in the coming months. But if your hunger for polka and liederhosen can’t be satiated, head to a theme town to get your European fix. When researching this post, I discovered that most themed towns rely on Oktoberfest and architecture to draw tourists there, so if you like beer, brats, and wood you won’t have to travel across the Atlantic to get them. Here are a few European “villages” the States has to offer:

Solvang, CA

This California-wine country town was founded as the center of a Danish academy, and those roots can still be seen not just in the Danish architecture, but in small details like immaculately-kept gardens. The name Solvang means “sunny field,” and the town’s website promotes a “bright happy cheery feeling.” You might recognize the town from its appearances in both The Simpsons and the movie Sideways.

New Glarus, WI

This “Little Swizterland” isn’t quite as authentic as Solvang, though the Chamber of Commerce’s web site boasts that many Swiss tourists visit the town (isn’t that a little like Americans traveling to Switzerland to visit Wal-mart?). Though it was a Swiss settlement, after WWII, a faltering agricultural industry gave way to the tourist sector. Swiss-styled architecture began popping up, and the alpine meadows created a perfect backdrop for a Swiss-themed town. Today, you can partake in Oktoberfest activies or hear polka bands honking their horns.

Helen, GA

Helen is a completely re-created town. You won’t find much European heritage here — in fact, the town is celebrating a meager 35 years as “a mountain community with a touch of Bavaria.” Complete with cobblestone streets and specialty shops selling everything from cuckoo clocks to schnitzel to wooden toys, Helen is a European stereotype at its tackiest. The town holds a two-month celebration of Oktoberfest, complete with a beer hall housing live polka music. You can also visit the Christmas Shoppe year-round (and it just wouldn’t be a European town if something wasn’t spelled “shoppe” or “olde,” would it?)

Leavenworth, WA

I grew up visiting Leavenworth, and to be honest the Bavarian-modeled village actually was my first taste of “Europe.” Granted, it’s a cheesy reconstruction, much like Helen, Georgia, but it was always fun to visit during Oktoberfest. Much as you would expect from a town that decided to model itself after a stereotypical German mountain village, you can hear live polka, eat bratwurst, visit a nutcracker museum, and shop in “quaint” wooden toy shoppes. It’s a nice town to visit during the winter, when ski trails cross town and the mountains are packed with snow.